Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Illinois

I think the first priority is to make sure the stocks (or the stock account) are held in your mother's name, either alone or as a joint tenant with your father. If the stocks were in your father's name alone and never transferred, you have a more complicated situation to deal with. Then, anticipate that upon your mother's death, there will most probably be a requirement to file a probate case in court to obtain authority to transfer the shares (unless your mother's estate planning documents were set up as a revocable living trust). Gain or loss for income tax purposes would be measured as the difference between the value on the date of your mother's death and the net sale proceeds, if the stock is sold. In other words, if the stock is sold in a short proximity of time after your mother's death, there would not likely be any substantial gain or loss.

I agree with Attorney Prihoda. First order of business is to verify how the stock is held on the books of the various companies. If they are held in a brokerage in "street name" then it's a question of who is on the account. If actual shares were issued, they should say. If your mom is decisional, there are several options. For example you could have her sign assignments to yourselves in such proportions as you may decide with her, but note if this drains all income and she winds up on Medicaid, the transfers can be undone during a 5-year window - the lot of you may have to essentially be responsible financially for her. Or she could set up a simple trust and put the stock in. If she is not decisional, then the will would dictate how the stock is supposed to be 'divvied up'. At the end of the day the 'transfer agent' for the shares will need some documentation as to handling transfer, whether it's now or later....